Several years ago I went to the UYWI Conference and the theme was Legacy, and posted on the bulletin boards and in miscellaneous places around the campus of Azusa Pacific were flyers detailing the lives of people who lived lives and left legacies to which we should take note. Certainly, I have seen a number of quotations today on twitter and facebook from Dr. King, but one of the greatest lessons I have learned is that my words, my actions, and my faith matter.
God placed a great burden upon the lap of Dr. King, and he did not shrink in that moment, but he answered the call just like Isaiah, “Here am I Lord, send me!” Injustice, prejudice, slavery, war, exploitation, poverty, hate, and suffering are still present in our world, all of the problems have not been solved. God is calling each one of us to stand up to oppression, and fight for justice. Your area of influence may be large or small, but the change to can effect is immeasurable. I urge you to answer God’s call on your life, and go out and be the change that this world needs.
Injustice doesn’t care what language you speak. It doesn’t care about the color of your skin. It doesn’t care what country you live in. It affects all of us. It tricks us with short-term benefits, but in the end we all suffer because of it. Martin Luther King Jr. knew this, and knew that it had to stop. I thank God for putting him in the world so that I could learn how to answer that call. I matter, you matter, and we both have the ability to truly change the world through the power given to us through the Holy Spirit.
In my eyes, that is a great legacy.
Elpis and Shalom 